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Russia denies responsibility for attack in northern Syria that killed 33 Turkish soldiers Turkey vows to escalate military action after 33 soldiers die in Syrian strike
(about 3 hours later)
MOSCOW — Russian military officials denied responsibility Friday for an airstrike in northern Syria that killed dozens of Turkish troops, as the risk of a major military confrontation between Russia and Turkey in the region escalated sharply. ISTANBUL — Turkey vowed Friday to escalate military actions in Idlib after 33 of its soldiers were killed in an airstrike it blamed on Syria, as the risk of a major military confrontation between Russia and Turkey in the region increased sharply.
Russia’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement that no Russian jets had been operating in the area of the strike carried out Thursday in Idlib province. Russia, which said its air force was not operating in the area of the attack, accused Turkey of breaching a 2018 cease-fire deal, which limited the deployment of Turkish troops to observation points in the region.
“Aircraft of the Russian Air Force did not engage in combat in the Behun vicinity,” the ministry said. The Kremlin accused Turkey’s military of failing to coordinate the position of their forces with Russian military forces in the region, a claim rejected by Hulusi Akar, Turkey’s defense minister.
Rahmi Dogan, governor of Hatay province in Turkey, announced that 33 soldiers were killed. Dozens more were reported wounded. “This attack occurred even though the locations of our troops had been coordinated with Russian officials in the field,” he told reporters in Hatay, a southern Turkish province bordering Syria, according to the state-run Anadolu news agency. Akar said Turkey retaliated against Syrian forces by destroying helicopters, tanks, an air defense system and other hardware and killing more than 300 Syrian forces.
The Russian statement said Moscow had warned Syria to cease attacks on anti-regime fighters in the Behun region when it became aware of the Turkish casualties. Fahrettin Altun, a spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, indicated that Turkey’s retaliatory strikes would continue. “Our operations in Syria will continue until we have those responsible for their martyrdom pay dearly,” he wrote on Twitter.
“As soon as the information about Turkish casualties was received, the Russian side took comprehensive measures to fully stop the firing by the Syrian forces and to ensure safe evacuation of the dead and injured Turkish servicemen to the Turkish territory,” the ministry said.
The Defense Ministry statement added that Turkey’s military had not provided Russia with the geolocation of its forces in Behun.
“At the same time, according to the coordinates provided by the Turkish side to the Russian Center for Reconciliation, there were no — and should not have been any — units of the Turkish armed forces in the area of Behun,” the Russian Defense Ministry statement said.
Syrian airstrike kills Turkish soldiers in Idlib, Turkish official saysSyrian airstrike kills Turkish soldiers in Idlib, Turkish official says
Turkey, a NATO member, convened an emergency meeting of the alliance’s ambassadors on Friday morning, stopping short of an attempt to invoke NATO’s all-for-one, one-for-all mutual defense pact but still drawing the group into the increasingly tense situation. The Syrian attack on Turkish forces Thursday occurred in southern Idlib. The death toll rose throughout the evening Thursday and early Friday, Rahmi Dogan, the governor of Hatay, announced that 33 soldiers had been killed and dozens more were wounded. The toll was the highest in a single day for Turkish forces during several years of military operations in Syria.
Under NATO’s founding treaty, any member can request consultations if it believes its security is under threat. It is only the sixth time in NATO’s 71-year history that a member has done so. Tensions in the region have escalated sharply as Russian-backed Syrian forces have advanced into Idlib, the last opposition stronghold, infuriating Erdogan, who fears that refugees fleeing the Syrian advance could spill across the border.
The Syrian offensive has caused a humanitarian crisis, as hundreds of thousands of displaced Syrians have fled their homes heading toward Turkey, many of them lacking adequate shelter. Turkey has deployed thousands of troops in Syria to prevent President Bashar al-Assad’s forces from defeating rebel groups, including Turkish-backed factions, and consolidating Syrian control in Idlib and nearby areas.
Erdogan has threatened to escalate military attacks on Syria if its forces do not retreat. Talks between Moscow and Ankara to resolve the crisis have failed to produce a solution.
Syria cease-fire agreement lifts threat of U.S. sanctions while letting Turkey keep buffer zone
In recent days, Russian officials have repeatedly accused Turkey of breaching a 2018 cease-fire deal and accused it of using artillery strikes and attack drones to defend rebel forces, including Turkish-backed groups and others that Russia and Syrian consider terrorist groups. Idlib province is largely controlled by an extremist group that once had ties with al-Qaeda.
Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone Friday and discussed the possibility of a meeting to try to cool tensions in the region, according to a statement from the Kremlin. The call was initiated by the Turkish leader, the Kremlin said.
The leaders agreed on the need to increase consultations and improve coordination between the two nations’ militaries in northern Syria, the Kremlin statement said. They also agreed there was need for steps to normalize the situation.
“Serious concern about the escalation of tensions in Idlib, which has led to multiple casualties, including those among Turkish servicemen, was expressed.” the statement said. “The importance of more effective coordination between the defense ministries of Russia and Turkey was underlined.”
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said his country “did all it could to ensure security of Turkish service members” at their observation posts. Peskov said under the 2018 cease-fire deal signed between Putin and Erdogan in Sochi, Turkish forces were deployed to observation posts to prevent attacks by extremist militias in the region.
“Our Turkish partners failed to perform this mission, as a significant number of militants are not under their control,” he said.
Turkey has justified its intervention, in part, by saying it is aimed at preventing a bloodbath in Idlib. Hundreds of civilians have been killed during the most recent Syrian offensive, in what human rights groups say are indiscriminate air and artillery strikes that frequently target civilian areas.
Turkey, a NATO member, convened an emergency meeting of the alliance’s ambassadors Friday morning, stopping short of an attempt to invoke NATO’s all-for-one, one-for-all mutual defense pact but still drawing the group into the increasingly tense situation.
Under NATO’s founding treaty, any member can request consultations if it believes its security is under threat. It is only the sixth time in the alliance’s 71-year history that a member has done so.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke Thursday night to Turkish Foreign Minister Mehmet Cavusoglu. NATO said in a statement that “Stoltenberg condemned the continued indiscriminate airstrikes by the Syrian regime and its backer Russia in Idlib province.”NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke Thursday night to Turkish Foreign Minister Mehmet Cavusoglu. NATO said in a statement that “Stoltenberg condemned the continued indiscriminate airstrikes by the Syrian regime and its backer Russia in Idlib province.”
Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels on Friday after the meeting of ambassadors: “Allies offered their deepest condolences for the death of Turkish soldiers in last night’s bombing in Idlib and expressed full solidarity with Turkey. We call on Russia and the Assad regime to stop the attacks.”Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels on Friday after the meeting of ambassadors: “Allies offered their deepest condolences for the death of Turkish soldiers in last night’s bombing in Idlib and expressed full solidarity with Turkey. We call on Russia and the Assad regime to stop the attacks.”
Turkey has deployed thousands of troops in Syria to prevent the forces of President Bashar al-Assad from defeating anti-regime militias in Idlib. In recent days, Russian officials have repeatedly accused Turkey of breaching a 2018 cease-fire deal and accused it of using artillery strikes and attack drones to defend anti-regime militias, which Russia and Syrian consider terrorist groups. Idlib province is largely controlled by an extremist group that once had ties with al-Qaeda. Erdogan has threatened allow millions of refugees and migrants his country hosts to cross into Europe if the international community does not act to halt the violence in Idlib. Turkey appeared to be making good on the threat after the death of its soldiers.
Tensions in the region have escalated sharply as Russian-backed Syrian forces have advanced into Idlib, the last opposition stronghold, infuriating Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who fears that refugees fleeing the Syrian advance could spill across the border. Portraits of Syrian refugees
Erdogan has threatened to escalate military attacks on Syria if its forces do not retreat. Talks between Moscow and Ankara to resolve the crisis have failed to produce a solution. Turkish television stations broadcast images Friday of migrants freely walking toward a land border with Greece or boarding boats in the Aegean Sea — actions that the Turkish authorities had previously prevented.
The Syrian advance has caused a humanitarian crisis, as hundreds of thousands of displaced Syrians have fled their homes heading toward Turkey, many of them lacking adequate shelter. “We are no longer in a position to hold the refugees,” Omer Celik, a spokesman for Erdogan’s ruling party, said in a statement, according to the state-run Anadolu news agency.
Turkey and Russia back opposing sides in Syria’s civil war, with Russia supporting Assad’s regime and Turkey supporting opposition forces. The conflict has put increasing strain on the close relationship between Erdogan and Russian President Vladi­mir Putin. Greek authorities appeared to be denying entry to the migrants, and a spokesman for the United Nations refu­gee agency said they had not seen any increased migrant flows to Greece as a result of Turkey’s actions.
Russia, which has two crucial military bases in Syria, has carried out airstrikes to aid the Syrian advance and provided Assad’s forces with other military support.
A senior Turkish official announced Friday that Turkey would open its borders to allow Syrian refugees to freely spill into Europe, Reuters reported Friday, without naming the official.
“All refugees, including Syrians, are now welcome to cross into the European Union,” the official said.
Yury Shvytkin, deputy chairman of the Russian State Duma’s defense committee, accused Turkey of aggression against Syria and flagrant support for terrorists.
“We will continue our effort to fight militants and terrorists together with al-Assad,” Shvytkin told Interfax news.,He added that it would be “inadmissible” for NATO to intervene.
Putin and Erdogan spoke by phone and discussed the possibility of a meeting in coming days to try to cool tensions in the region, according to a statement from the Kremlin.
The leaders agreed on the need to increase consultations and to improve communications between their militaries in northern Syria. They also agreed there was a need for steps to normalize the situation.
“Serious concern about the escalation of tensions in Idlib, which has led to multiple casualties, including those among Turkish servicemen, was expressed,” the statement said.
The call was initiated by the Turkish leader, the Kremlin said.
Michael Birnbaum in Stockholm contributed to this report.Michael Birnbaum in Stockholm contributed to this report.
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